an accepted or professed rule of action or conduct: a person of good moral principles.
a fundamental, primary, or general law or truth from which others are derived: the principles of modern physics.
a fundamental doctrine or tenet; a distinctive ruling opinion: the principles of the Stoics.
principles,a personal or specific basis of conduct or management: to adhere to one's principles; a kindergarten run on modern principles.
guiding sense of the requirements and obligations of right conduct: a person of principle.
an adopted rule or method for application in action: a working principle for general use.
a rule or law exemplified in natural phenomena, the construction or operation of a machine, the working of a system, or the like: the principle of capillary attraction.
the method of formation, operation, or procedure exhibited in a given case: a community organized on the patriarchal principle.
a determining characteristic of something; essential quality.
an originating or actuating agency or force: growth is the principle of life.
an actuating agency in the mind or character, as an instinct, faculty, or natural tendency: the principles of human behavior.
Chemistry. a constituent of a substance, especially one giving to it some distinctive quality or effect.
Obsolete. beginning or commencement.
Idioms for principle
in principle, in essence or substance; fundamentally: to accept a plan in principle.
on principle,
according to personal rules for right conduct; as a matter of moral principle: He refused on principle to agree to the terms of the treaty.
according to a fixed rule, method, or practice: He drank hot milk every night on principle.
Origin of principle
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, alteration of Middle French principe or Latin prīncipium, on the analogy of manciple; see principium
SYNONYMS FOR principle
2 theorem, axiom, postulate, proposition.
5 integrity, probity, rectitude, honor.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR principle ON THESAURUS.COM
synonym study for principle
1-3. Principle,canon,rule imply something established as a standard or test, for measuring, regulating, or guiding conduct or practice. A principle is a general and fundamental truth that may be used in deciding conduct or choice: to adhere to principle.Canon, originally referring to an edict of the Church (a meaning that it still retains), is used of any principle, law, or critical standard that is officially approved, particularly in aesthetics and scholarship: canons of literary criticism. A rule, usually something adopted or enacted, is often the specific application of a principle: the golden rule.
words often confused with principle
See principal.
WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH principle
principal, principle (see confusables note at principal; see synonym study at the current entry)
Words nearby principle
principal rafter, principal value, principate, Príncipe, principium, principle, principled, principle of complementarity, principle of economy, principle of indifference, principle of least action
Overall, many of the principles Barr put forward are unobjectionable in general.
The stunning hypocrisy of Bill Barr|Andrew Prokop|September 17, 2020|Vox
Generally speaking, they do this by creating guidelines and principles for developers, funders, and regulators to follow.
AI ethics groups are repeating one of society’s classic mistakes|Amy Nordrum|September 14, 2020|MIT Technology Review
You write all human languages are unified by a simple principle.
Talking Is Throwing Fictional Worlds at One Another - Issue 89: The Dark Side|Kevin Berger|September 9, 2020|Nautilus
This means that, in principle, an algorithm might learn to represent the meaning of words simply from their distributions in a large amount of text.
Welcome to the Next Level of Bullshit - Issue 89: The Dark Side|Raphaël Millière|September 9, 2020|Nautilus
Abouheif thinks that what is happening in carpenter ants may illustrate a broader principle involving symbioses and evolution.
How Two Became One: Origins of a Mysterious Symbiosis Found|Viviane Callier|September 9, 2020|Quanta Magazine
But the qualities Mario Cuomo brought to public life—compassion, integrity, commitment to principle—remain in short supply today.
President Cuomo Would’ve Been a Lion|Jonathan Alter|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Nixon said defending the two islands was “a matter of principle.”
The World’s Toughest Political Quiz|Jeff Greenfield|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If the noble experiment of American democracy is to mean anything, it is fidelity to the principle of freedom.
The Sony Hack and America’s Craven Capitulation To Terror|David Keyes|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Let the record show that espousing principles is common; acting on principle is rare.
Justice Ginsburg Shouldn’t Quit Just Yet|Kevin Bleyer|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The principle that outsiders should be welcomed and provided for was a cross-cultural theme in ancient cultures.
Pope Bids Refugees to EU ‘Bienvenido’; Europe Says ‘Non’|Candida Moss|November 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Maoris themselves have observed this fact and applied the principle to their own obvious fate.
Influences of Geographic Environment|Ellen Churchill Semple
The Central Authority in 1907 applies this principle unreservedly to one class only, the wayfarers or vagrants.
English Poor Law Policy|Sidney Webb
The church of Rome has acted upon this principle, and even Protestants (to the shame of Protestantism) have followed her example.
Notes on the Book of Deuteronomy, Volume II|Charles Henry Mackintosh
None of the men like him—except Freddy Lancaster, of course; he likes everybody, on principle; he doesn't count.
The Landlord at Lion's Head, Complete|William Dean Howells
It is the principle of individualism, competition, each one for himself and against all the rest.
Socialism|John Stuart Mill
British Dictionary definitions for principle (1 of 2)
principle
/ (ˈprɪnsɪpəl) /
noun
a standard or rule of personal conducta man of principle
(often plural)a set of such moral ruleshe'd stoop to anything; he has no principles
adherence to such a moral code; moralityit's not the money but the principle of the thing; torn between principle and expediency
a fundamental or general truth or lawfirst principles
the essence of somethingthe male principle
a source or fundamental cause; originprinciple of life
a rule or law concerning a natural phenomenon or the behaviour of a systemthe principle of the conservation of mass
an underlying or guiding theory or beliefthe hereditary principle; socialist principles
chema constituent of a substance that gives the substance its characteristics and behaviourbitter principle
in principlein theory or essence
on principlebecause of or in demonstration of a principle
Word Origin for principle
C14: from Latin principium beginning, basic tenet
usage for principle
Principle and principal are often confused: the principal (not principle) reason for his departure; the plan was approved in principle (not in principal)
British Dictionary definitions for principle (2 of 2)